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* Mary Mitchell on Chicago’s now internationally notorious Facebook Live kidnapping and torture case…
But given the times we live in, the criteria for charging someone with a hate crime can’t be based on outrage and political correctness.
The most mind-boggling part of this recent drama, and apparently the part that has led to hate crime charges, is that these losers live-streamed the abuse, posting it on Facebook. That’s what brought this sick episode to the attention of millions.
With Chicago in the national spotlight for all the wrong reasons of late, the case is a test for newly installed Cook County State’s Attorney Kimberly Foxx and offers testament that racist behavior toward whites in the wake of the Trump presidency isn’t going to be overlooked.
But let’s be clear. As ugly as the assault upon the special needs young man was, this incident pales in comparison to what happened in Joliet in 2013.
Then, an even more depraved group of young white people lured Terrance Rankins and Eric Glover, two African-Americans, into a Joliet house, strangled them and then had sex on top of the corpses.
Adam Landerman, Alisa Massaro, Joshua Miner and Bethany McKee were each charged with first-degree murder and attempting to dismember the bodies.
Although the victims were black and the attackers white, a spokesman for the Will County state’s attorney’s office said at the time that prosecutors were unsure whether race was a factor in the murder.
Where was the outrage then?
When a victim is a different race than the attacker, the offense isn’t automatically a hate crime. It’s utter nonsense to suggest anything like that. And there was plenty of outrage back then over that grotesque Joliet crime.
Also, it wasn’t the live-streamed video itself, it was what was in the video that caused so much outrage and led to the hate crime charges. C’mon.
* From the Chicago Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights Under Law, Inc.…
The Chicago Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights condemns the vicious attack on a young man with developmental disabilities that was live-streamed on Facebook by one of the perpetrators and dominated local and national news yesterday. Authorities in Chicago completed their preliminary investigation and have charged four young people with hate crimes, as well as kidnapping, aggravated assault, and additional charges that carry stiff criminal penalties.
The shaky video that went viral Tuesday overnight and generated outrage from millions of viewers shows the 18-year-old victim bound by his wrists and neck, his mouth taped closed, crouching in a corner, as his attackers taunt him, slash his clothing with knives, and take turns slapping, punching and kicking him. On cropped video segments available all over the web, the perpetrators can be heard making comments about the victim being white, and “representing Trump.” They also mock his appearance and force to him drink from a toilet. At one point, one of the attackers cuts a chunk of his hair and scalp off with a knife.
Around homes and offices, millions of people saw the news clips and asked one another, “Who would do such a thing?” “What was the motivation?” “How do we, as a society, respond to and prevent these despicable acts?”
Let’s be clear: Violent acts committed against any person because of that person’s disability status and/or race are hate crimes under Illinois law. The Chicago Lawyers’ Committee has worked to support victims of hate crimes for over 25 years. We helped to make Illinois’ Hate Crime law as strong as possible for protected groups, and we have used the law to assist multiple victims in both criminal and civil proceedings. We have represented African American victims who were attacked by skinheads in Fox Lake, Latino families harassed and assaulted in Chicago, and we have secured multiple large civil verdicts to penalize offenders and send a strong message condemning and deterring such actions.
What we saw on the video clips looks very much like a hate crime against a young man because of his disability status and race. The Chicago Police Department has determined that four people committed certain crimes against a young man because of his disability and race. And now prosecutors and the courts must do their work to enforce the law. Under the Illinois Hate Crime Act, crimes motivated in whole or in part because of racial or disability bias are hate crimes, even if there were other motives for the crimes. The perpetrators should be held accountable for their brutal acts against a particularly vulnerable victim.
But let us also acknowledge history and context here: Most victims of hate crime in our country are people of color; this has been true every year since the FBI has collected hate crime statistics. Over the past year, African Americans, Latinos, people of color, immigrants, Muslims, Jews, LGBTQ individuals, and people with disabilities have all been targets of hate crimes far more often than white individuals. What happened to this young man in Chicago is heart-breaking and intolerable. We must seek justice and healing for him and his family and demand appropriate punishment for his attackers. But as we do so, let us remember to speak up and insist on justice just as vociferously and promptly every time we hear of a hate crime, no matter the race, religion, ethnicity, sexual orientation, gender or disability status of the victim.
Most hate crimes are not reported and they must be. The Chicago Lawyers’ Committee is committed to supporting individuals and communities targeted by hate speech and violence. We encourage all people who are victims of hate crime, or who need additional information and support, to call our Hate Crime Project at 312-202-3663. Hate crime is bigotry at its worst. In a country that stands for equal rights and equal protection for all, violent intolerance is unacceptable.
posted by Rich Miller
Friday, Jan 6, 17 @ 11:44 am
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The speed at which this video became a coordinated attack on the Black Lives Matter movement was both impressive and frightening.
Comment by 47th Ward Friday, Jan 6, 17 @ 11:47 am
“race, religion, ethnicity, sexual orientation, gender or disability status”
It is time to add “political affiliation” to this list.
Comment by cdog Friday, Jan 6, 17 @ 11:50 am
Let’s repeat these wise words…
“When a victim is a different race than the attacker, the offense isn’t automatically a hate crime,” said Mr. Miller.
I would add to this, the different ethnic communities that tend to use “victim status” as their preferred daily affirmation, need to buck up.
Maybe ask yourself if your community/culture has any room for improvement in understanding right and wrong, parental duties, etc. We know there are 3-5 wards in Chicago that need to have a serious conversation with themselves.
Be part of the solution, or you are part of the problem.
Comment by cdog Friday, Jan 6, 17 @ 11:56 am
It’s frustrating how no one can seem to focus anymore. So these 4 people committed a horrible act that will be prosecuted as a hate crime. I agree with that.
Why, then, is it important to point out incidents where white people did bad things? Or that minorities are typically the victims of hate crimes? How is that useful or productive, in this instance? It only fuels discord.
“You do it too” or “you do it worse” is never a productive line of conversation. I want to be very clear that that cuts both ways. You can’t justify your wrongdoing by saying others do wrong as well.
This incident is disgusting. It does not speak to racial relations within the entire city, though. These were 4 bad people who did a horrible thing. Any horrible things unrelated to this are simply distractions.
As soon as we stop saying “typical [insert anything],” we’ll stop marginalization people and things.
Four people did a bad thing here. That’s all that counts.
Comment by AlfondoGonz Friday, Jan 6, 17 @ 11:56 am
They should get the maximum sentence.
Comment by DuPage Friday, Jan 6, 17 @ 11:57 am
===the different ethnic communities that tend to use “victim status” as their preferred daily affirmation, need to buck up===
Yeah. Particularly the WASPs.
Comment by Rich Miller Friday, Jan 6, 17 @ 12:01 pm
First, let me say that I agree this weeks act, and the one described in the post are deplorable, disturbing, and should be appropriately punished.
Second, both acts meet the definition of a hate crime, so if we are going to have a hate crime law, then we should apply it to these acts.
Third - am I odd because I think that we should apply all our laws for crimes against persons and property equally to everyone, regardless of race, gender, orientation, etc?. Either you had justifiable reasons to commit an act (self-defense, defense of others, etc), or you didn’t. After that, shouldn’t we treat all NON-justifiable reasons pretty much the same? IF we could actually do that, would we need a hate crime statute? I guess I have answered my own question: we can’t seem to apply our laws equitably to all perps and victims blindly as Lady Justice is portrayed.
Comment by thoughts matter Friday, Jan 6, 17 @ 12:01 pm
We should hope and expect that the new Cook County State’s Attorney, and all prosecutors, apply Hate Crime law consistently, across all demographics. There is a difference between evaluating a case for its shock value and its draw of media attention, and evaluating a case for what the evidence shows may have been the motivation of the offender. The public should give the prosecutors space in which to learn a case, evaluate it, then prosecute it.
Comment by IRLJ Friday, Jan 6, 17 @ 12:02 pm
Mitchell often views issues primarily through the race lens, and has trouble seeing things without that seeming to override everything else, to the detriment of her writing.
The Joliet thing sparked plenty of outrage. The present incident involved the perpetrators broadcasting race based hatred, and the victim was disabled - race and disability being 2 of the factors in the hate crimes analysis.
Personally, I am not a big fan of having “hate crimes” on the books (there really aren’t any “love crimes” and to me, motive seems to be more appropriately considered as a aggravation/mitigation factor in sentencing), but they are the current law and seem to fit the actions depicted.
Comment by titan Friday, Jan 6, 17 @ 12:02 pm
I legitimately don’t understand hate crime laws. Punish the behavior (which was despicable) and impose a sentence in accordance with the reprehensibility of the crime. I don’t get why there’s a need to tack on another offense because of the motivation of the attacker. Alternatively, consider the motivation of the attacker at sentencing and give a more length sentence.
Comment by Anon Friday, Jan 6, 17 @ 12:03 pm
That this video was repulsive enough to make people think and react so dramatically, offers some hope that a line exists. A line that says we can’t tolerate this behavior, ever, no matter who, no matter where, no matter when.
I’d suggest to Mary (who is a bit jaded sometimes, but she absolutely does live close to so much violence, she’s credible and honest) that it’s not a contest to see who’s horrific behavior is the most heinous…it’s all got to stop.
Comment by A guy Friday, Jan 6, 17 @ 12:04 pm
It seems Ms. Mitchell needs to familiarize herself with the legal definition of a hate crime.
Comment by Cubs in '16 Friday, Jan 6, 17 @ 12:09 pm
It’s absolutely nauseating how quickly pundits and cable and radio yakkers have taken the unspeakable crime against this poor man to build their pathetic little media “brands.”
A pox on all of them, for all the good these “entertainers” do.
Horrible crimes happen every day, all over the world. The cops and prosecutors are on this one.
The fact that this crime was on video for the world to see is not license to pump for ratings or clicks or a bump in speaker fees by playing to your “audience.” Have some decency and respect for the victim. He’s not your meal ticket.
Comment by wordslinger Friday, Jan 6, 17 @ 12:10 pm
This horrific act has been front page news in literally every newspaper around the country. The reason is simple: Its clickbate for old scared white people. There are studies that show how local news organizations focus on african american crime to drive up ratings.
I hope these kids get a harsh sentence. This is also a reminder that racism persists in out country.
Comment by Provel Friday, Jan 6, 17 @ 12:11 pm
A guy
Thank you for saying what I was trying to say in a more effective way
Comment by AlfondoGonz Friday, Jan 6, 17 @ 12:11 pm
Each case should be determined on its own (de)merits, but as I pointed out yesterday, the hate crime charge will get all the attention and vitriol, but it’s the aggravated kidnapping charge that carries the highest penalties here and in my opinion will be the one they have the most trouble beating. If they can’t beat that, they’re going away for a long time with or without the hate crime tacked on.
Comment by Ron Burgundy Friday, Jan 6, 17 @ 12:11 pm
Rather than debating the alleged racist/hate crime aspects of this horrid event, I’d be more interested in reading an in-depth biography of each of these four assailants (at least 200 pages each if possible)so I could start to understand how a person gets to the point of doing such a thing.
Comment by Cook County Commoner Friday, Jan 6, 17 @ 12:12 pm
With Chicago such a segregated city and majority of the violence in one area, elected officials and residents of Chicago have taken an “Out of sight, out of mind” approach. Now with social media this is no longer possible. I don’t know the solution but if you live in Chicago ignoring this problem is not the answer.
Comment by Almost the Weekend Friday, Jan 6, 17 @ 12:12 pm
Don’t the actual words used by the perpetrators justify a hate crime? “Whitey”
Comment by Sue Friday, Jan 6, 17 @ 12:13 pm
“Yeah. Particularly the WASPs.” sarcasm, I hope. Mary Mitchell is opening up a can of worms. the reality is that by the reported Justice Statistics numbers, most of the time crime is race on race. but it is more often black on white than it is white on black. you do not want to go there, Mary. and you’d have to start discussing sexual assault and gender. just focus on this incident with true outrage.
it’s a hate crime when they are yelling the N word, or the S word or the W/Cracker word, the F/G/L words and more.
it’s starting to sound a lot like the incident is being taken somewhat as an aberration among other hate crimes with all the reminders given of what those decrying hate crimes usually have to discuss. just call it what it is, decry it, and decry the next horrible thing that happens.
Comment by Amalia Friday, Jan 6, 17 @ 12:16 pm
Also, as a practical matter adding hate crime charges to a murder case doesn’t mean much other than symbolism. In the Joliet case 3 of the defendants were convicted of murder and got life. The other turned State’s evidence and got a deal for 10 years.
Comment by Ron Burgundy Friday, Jan 6, 17 @ 12:16 pm
I agree with Thoughts Matter on whether there should be a hate crime classification. If a black guy (or girl I guess) beats me up because I’m white or some white guy (or girl) beats me up just for fun I want them both to be punished to the max.
Comment by Been There Friday, Jan 6, 17 @ 12:19 pm
These people were charged with multiple felonies which include aggravated kidnapping. The aggravated kidnapping is a class X felony, the most serious in Illinois. The hate crime is a class 3 felony. Adding the hate crime to the aggravated kidnapping is like adding an unlawful use of firearm count to a murder charge. If they’re convicted of the aggravated kidnapping charge, the hate crime would be insignificant at sentencing. It’s difficult to discern what point Ms. Mitchell was trying to make when the Joliet case ended in life sentences for three of the people convicted in the robbery/murders. These four people may be racist hate filled thugs or they may be young and dumb kids who egged each other on to string together a series of bad decisions. The video is sad, shocking and creates a visceral reaction to viewers. What we really need to figure out is how inflicting terror and pain on an already challenged young person didn’t trigger anything in any of the four accused perpetrators to get them to stop. Strip away any of the racial issues and we’re left with four young people devoid of compassion and decency. What’s the remedy for that?
Comment by Trapped in the 'burbs Friday, Jan 6, 17 @ 12:30 pm
I’m curious if Been There and Thoughts Matter think that an individual who kills someone in the “heat of passion” should be punished to the same extent as a “cold-blooded killer” or if a terrorist should be punished more harshly than another who takes the same actions without ideological motivation? It’s interesting how objections to motivation only pop up when discussing hate crimes.
Comment by Anonymous Friday, Jan 6, 17 @ 12:42 pm
The reality is that designation of an offense this violent as a “hate crime” does not have much additional impact on what will likely be harsh sentences anyway under numerous other sentencing provisions. So I don’t really get the fixation on the “hate” element. The facts are not that different from many brutal gang rape kidnapping cases which are almost never charged as hate crimes no matter how many misogynist insults are hurdled. BTW, with respect to the streaming video, the legislature has already made that a factor to be used for an extended term sentence. “When a defendant commits any felony and the
defendant knowingly video or audio records the offense with the intent to disseminate the recording.” 730 ILCS 5/5-5-3.2 (b) (9).
Comment by Anonymous Friday, Jan 6, 17 @ 12:43 pm
==The fact that this crime was on video for the world to see is not license to pump for ratings or clicks or a bump in speaker fees by playing to your “audience.” Have some decency and respect for the victim. He’s not your meal ticket.==
If you’re left, and I suspect there’s little doubt you are, then this is hypocritical comedy gold.
Comment by Cobble Friday, Jan 6, 17 @ 12:53 pm
Three of the kids were 18 years, 4 if you include the victim. We have to have a more compassionate and nuanced view of bad acts in a situation like this. Young people can do terrible things when they are together and even they don’t know why.
Comment by NoGifts Friday, Jan 6, 17 @ 12:55 pm
I was annoyed when the new State’s Attorney took so long to charge the perpetrators with a hate crime, but the right decision was eventually made.
This case has caused international outrage. I spoke with someone in Europe who was familiar with the story and saw the video.
Comment by W Flag Friday, Jan 6, 17 @ 12:57 pm
===then this is hypocritical comedy gold.===
How so?
Comment by 47th Ward Friday, Jan 6, 17 @ 12:57 pm
===Young people can do terrible things when they are together and even they don’t know why===
True, but when they harm somebody, it cannot be excused.
Comment by Rich Miller Friday, Jan 6, 17 @ 12:58 pm
The whole issue of “hate crimes” makes me most suspicious.
Many crimes involve hate even when it is people of the same sex and race involved. ‘Hate crimes’ is basically a manifestation of the PC movement.
Just prosecute anyone and everyone to the fullest extent of the law when they perform such horrible actions. This should be race/sex/ disability etc blind.
Comment by Federalist Friday, Jan 6, 17 @ 12:59 pm
===new State’s Attorney took so long to charge===
LOL
A day? Really?
Take a breath.
Comment by Rich Miller Friday, Jan 6, 17 @ 12:59 pm
-There are studies that show how local news organizations focus on african american crime to drive up ratings.-
“Studies” eh? It couldn’t be that African American crime is just more prevalent, could it be? Nah!
Comment by Flen Friday, Jan 6, 17 @ 1:00 pm
===‘Hate crimes’ is basically a manifestation of the PC movement.===
That says more about you than maybe you think it does.
Comment by Rich Miller Friday, Jan 6, 17 @ 1:01 pm
the urge to keep score on who’s the perp and who’s the victim is dehumanizing.
Comment by Lycurgus Friday, Jan 6, 17 @ 1:05 pm
** That says more about you than maybe you think it does. **
What? That questioning political correctness makes one a racist ?
Comment by DGD Friday, Jan 6, 17 @ 1:18 pm
47th ==how so?==
Never mind. Continue on as you are. Really, please do! Lol
Comment by Cobble Friday, Jan 6, 17 @ 1:21 pm
I’m not suggesting excusing their bad acts- that was a pretty big leap - I’m suggesting that the throw away the key sentiments I’m seeing expressed are not appropriate. I realize teenagers are infuriatingly smug and act stupid, but it is mostly biology not evil.
Comment by NoGifts Friday, Jan 6, 17 @ 1:21 pm
Cobble, where do you see that I made any distinction between yakkers anywhere on the political spectrum exploiting this crime?
I’m aware that dividing everything into “left” and “right” simplifies the world for those who struggle with critical thinking, but I ain’t some kid in the schoolyard who needs to “pick a side” on everything,
In fact, that was precisely the point I was making about brand-building media types who do.
Comment by wordslinger Friday, Jan 6, 17 @ 1:26 pm
Cobble, house rules prevent me from telling you to go (blank) yourself.
Comment by 47th Ward Friday, Jan 6, 17 @ 1:27 pm
Cobble, that’s two posts from you, and both have found humor on this subject.
Is that a “left” or “right” thing, by your way of thinking?
Comment by wordslinger Friday, Jan 6, 17 @ 1:32 pm
Dang. Had Starbucks idea of “Let’s Talk Race” (with a backed up line of 15 customers) got off the ground, this “unacceptable” vitriol could have been avoided.
Comment by Anonymous Friday, Jan 6, 17 @ 1:58 pm
sure, the charges added don’t add much. but they show the reality of the crime. unless, of course, you don’t want hate crime charges filed when it is white on black. file in all cases where it is according to the facts. the facts are what matters and should be pursued for justice and teaching for change.
Comment by Amalia Friday, Jan 6, 17 @ 2:00 pm
===it was what was in the video that caused so much outrage and led to the hate crime charges. C’mon===
Agreed.
Comment by Boone's is Back Friday, Jan 6, 17 @ 3:34 pm